(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved reversibly operating door opener apparatus with a power transfer mechanism between a drive motor and a first flexible drive means and a second flexible drive means operating a carriage assembly for the door. In particular, the present invention relates to a relatively compact door opener which enables mounting in a relatively small space in a building; particularly, a garage.
(2) Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,794,731 to Willmott et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,221,869 to Williams et al; U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,418 to Richmond et al; U.S. Pat. No. 51927,690 to White et al and U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,212 to Mullet et al describe various types of door opener mechanisms. In each of these patents, the motor assembly directly transfers the power to a flexible drive member attached to a carriage assembly mounted on the door. As a result, the door opener apparatus will not fit into a relatively small space which is confined by a barrier, beam or other obstruction in the building. There is a need for an improved door opener apparatus which enables mounting in such a confined space. Only of general interest is U.S. Pat. No. 5,841,253 to Fitzgibbon et al.
Up until about 1992, cables on the side of the door could be operated by a pulley and motor mounted on a door frame. This construction is no longer regarded as being safe and is not approved by the Federal Government. Such an apparatus, if legal, would enable door openings even in the presence of a barrier in the building. There has been no replacement for this type of apparatus.
Thus, there is a need for a door opener apparatus which operates in a confined space and which is safe.
The present invention relates to a door operating apparatus for a reversibly operable door in a building, which comprises: a frame with opposed ends to be mounted and extend away from the door inside the building; a carriage assembly mounted on the frame at one of the ends so as to be adjacent to and connected to the door and linearly moveable on the frame for moving the door between open and closed positions; a first flexible drive means connected to the carriage assembly and which extends adjacent the frame away from the one of the ends of the frame and which when activated moves the carriage to open and close the door; a rotatable driven member mounted on the frame, which driven member mounts and drives the first flexible drive means; a rotatable shaft having opposed ends mounting the driven member for rotation at one of the ends of the shaft, the shaft being mounted in at least one bearing means mounted on the frame; a rotatable drive member mounted at the other of the ends of the shaft; a second flexible drive means mounted on the rotatable drive member which when activated rotates the shaft and driven member; and an electric drive motor member mounted adjacent to the other of the ends of the frame with a rotatable means which is connected to the second flexible drive means, wherein when the drive motor is activated the rotatable means moves the second flexible drive means, rotates the drive member, shaft and driven member to move the first flexible drive means and the carriage assembly to open and close the door.
Further, the present invention relates to a building with a door operating apparatus for a reversibly operable door, which comprises: a frame with opposed ends to be mounted and extend away from the door inside the building; a carriage assembly mounted on the frame at one of the ends so as to be adjacent to and connected to the door and linearly moveable on the frame for moving the door between open and closed positions; a first flexible drive means connected to the carriage assembly and which extends adjacent the frame away from the one of the ends of the frame and which when activated moves the carriage to open and close the door; a rotatable driven member mounted on the frame, which driven member mounts and drives the first flexible drive means; a rotatable shaft having opposed ends mounting the driven member for rotation at one of the ends of the shaft, the shaft being mounted in at least one bearing means mounted on the frame; a rotatable drive member mounted at the other of the ends of the shaft; a second flexible drive means mounted on the rotatable drive member which when activated rotates the shaft and driven member; and an electric drive motor member mounted on the other of the ends of the frame with a rotatable means which is connected to the second flexible drive means, wherein when the drive motor is activated the rotatable means moves the second flexible drive means, rotates the drive member, shaft and driven member to move the first flexible drive means and the carriage assembly to open and close the door.
Finally, the present invention relates to a method of installing a door operating apparatus for a reversibly operable door in a building with a relatively short space between the door and a beam in the building, which comprises: a frame with opposed ends to be mounted away from the door inside the building; a carriage assembly mounted on the frame at one of the ends so as to be adjacent to and connected to the door and linearly moveable on the frame for moving the door between open and closed positions; a first flexible drive means connected to the carriage assembly and which extends adjacent the frame away from the one of the ends of the frame and which when activated moves the carriage to open and close the door; a rotatable driven member mounted on the frame, which driven member mounts and drives the first flexible drive means; a rotatable shaft having opposed ends mounting the driven member for rotation at one of the ends of the shaft, the shaft being mounted in at least one bearing means mounted on the frame; a rotatable drive member mounted at the other of the ends of the shaft; a second flexible drive means mounted on the rotatable drive member which when activated rotates the shaft and driven member; an electric drive motor member mounted on the other of the ends of the frame with a rotatable means which is connected to the second flexible drive means, wherein when the drive motor is activated the rotatable means moves the second flexible drive means, rotates the drive member, shaft and driven member to move the first flexible drive means and the carriage assembly to open and close the door; and mounting the frame in the building adjacent to the door and on the beam of the building and connecting the carriage assembly to the door, wherein the electric motor is mounted adjacent to the beam.
In most instances, the drive and driven members are bicycle type sprockets mounted on the drive shaft and bicycle type chains which are provided to engage the sprockets. This power transfer mechanism provides the safest and most reliable door opening apparatus.
Thus, the invention relates to an electrically operated door opener, preferably with a chain drive mechanism. Usually, it is fitted into a garage. Attached to the electrically operated garage door opener is a length of a first bicycle type chain geared to the internal chain drive mechanism of the garage door opener motor. The other end of this length of bicycle type chain, as a first chain, is mounted around a drive sprocket mounted on a shaft. The shaft is preferably a length of round steel bar with the drive sprocket and a driven sprocket mounted on each of the ends. The shaft is of a length to fit the installation space parameters vertically, and is mounted perpendicular to the first chain. The shaft is mounted rearward of the garage door opener and garage door.
A length of a similar bicycle type chain, as a second chain, is fitted to the driven sprocket at the other end of said shaft. Movement and travel of the second chain is guided by a traverse rail, forwardly directed and ceiling located, towards the top of the garage door. Extending from the end of this said chain is a length of cable which is attached to the top of the garage door through a hinged bracket in a carriage assembly.
The electrically operated door opener mechanism is mounted on the ceiling area of the garage, or from a side wall on beams or installed on mounts at a height equal to the height of the garage door in its raised position. The entire mechanism is essentially parallel to the garage floor in its fully installed position.
Preferably, mounted interiorly on the garage door frame, on both sides of the garage door opening, at no higher than six (6) inches, are infrared light optical sensors for an auto-reverse safety system. The infrared optical sensor projects a beam across the garage door opening that detects people or objects which are in the way of the closing door.
The garage door opener is activated by a handheld remote controller or can be activated by wall mounted activation switch, interiorly or exteriorly located in the building. The door opener is particularly adapted for garage doors presently installed in older homes and new homes, which do not have sufficient clearance to install a conventional electrically operated garage door having Federally mandated safety features. The improved electrically actuated overhead garage door opener assembly, provides for electric garage doors to be installed in a garage area which has limited overhead space, or which have a wall mounted garage door opener which is operated by cables and which is unsafe.
The improved apparatus is particularly adapted for homes that have an electrically operated garage door opener which was installed before Federal laws mandated motion sensors or other safety mechanisms which prevent the downward closing movement of a garage door when someone or something passes across the closing door""s path. The safety feature is mandated by law to prevent accidental injuries caused by a door that has no means of stopping once the closing mechanism is activated. This safety feature has been included in this invention to bring older garage door openers in line with Federal safety laws.
When the electrically operated garage door opener mechanism is activated by either a remote controller or an activation switch, the garage door motor initiates the first chain drive on the drive sprocket on the rearward perpendicular shaft which rotates said shaft which rotates the driven sprocket which moves the second chain and cable combination. The rearward movement of the second chain and cable attached to the top of the garage door carriage assembly pulls the garage door upward along its track in a rearward motion, opening the garage door.
When the garage door is in its upward and rearward position, the garage door is open. The garage door is closed by the activation of the electrically operated garage door opener by remote controller or interior or exterior wall mounted activation switch causing a reverse movement of the chain drive mechanism in the garage door opener. The first chain linkage to the drive sprocket reverses direction, thereby moving the shaft and driven sprocket in a reverse direction, rotating the second chain and cable to the carriage assembly mounted on the top of the garage door, allowing the door to move in a forward direction by the release of tension in the conventional garage door torsion or ballast system, thus closing the garage door.
Objects
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a reversible door opener apparatus which enables the mounting in a building where the space is confined. Further still, it is an object of the present invention to provide an opener which is safe and which does not rely on mechanisms which power cables on the sides of the door.
These and other objects will become increasingly apparent by reference to the following description and the drawings.